The biggest regular season game in history?
In Week 18 the Minnesota Vikings travel to Detroit with more than just the usual divisional bragging rights to play for.
The stakes are simple, the winner gets the number one seed, the first round bye and home-field advantage through the playoffs.
The loser will be the number five seed and have to do things the hard way. Starting with a road game against a division winner and the very likely possibility of not playing at home again this season.
This is the first time in NFL history that teams with a combined 28 wins have met in the regular season, both the Vikings and Lions deserve all the plaudits they have received for their performances this season.
Detroit
Detroit have matched the lofty expectations placed on them by fans and the media alike.
Losing a defensive talisman like Aidan Hutchison would have slowed down many teams, but the Lions keep finding ways to win.
Injuries could have defined their season, you could quite feasibly field an NFL calibre defense from their players on IR.
Where they have thrived is the other side of the ball, the running game has been a big part of their success.
The ‘Sonic and Knuckles’ tandem of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery has been very impressive and while the latter will unfortunately play no further part this season, Gibbs has picked up the slack.
Amon-Ra St. Brown has again shown why he deserves to be in the conversation as one of the best receivers in the league.
Minnesota
For the Vikings the early season predictions could not have been more inaccurate.
Even the most optimistic predictions had the Vikings sneaking into a wildcard spot and there were plenty of analysts who had the Vikings dead last in the NFC North.
When compared with the Lions it has been a relatively smooth ride for the Vikings on the injury front. Losing Christian Darrisaw was a big blow but the trade for Cam Robinson has at least plugged that hole.
On the other side of the ball Brian Flores has built a scheme which has produced at least one turnover in every game this season.
The versatility of players like Harrison Smith, Andrew Van Ginkel, Jonathan Greenard and Josh Metellus has meant that even the savviest opponents have struggled to get the better of the Vikings defense.
Parallels
There are many similarities between the two teams, on the field they are led by quarterbacks who were drafted with incredibly high expectations.
Jared Goff and Sam Darnold were cast off by the teams who drafted them and both have found new homes. It came as no shock when they were announced as two of the three representatives at quarterback in the Pro Bowl for the NFC earlier this week.
Dan Campbell and Kevin O’Connell have reinvigorated fanbases who were used to mediocrity, pain and heartbreak.
Whoever gets the win will have earned the number one seed and the perks that come with it.
But that does not mean all is lost for the loser, anything can happen in playoff football.
It would not be a surprise if this is not the last time these two face off this season.
